With the troublemaking woman gone, the scenery of fleeting spring was lost, and the crowd at the Yang family shop quickly dispersed.

Zheng Dafeng, shrinking his head and shoulders, scurried to the eaves of the main house and squatted at a distance, not daring to get too close to Old Man Yang.

Though both were disciples, his treatment and Li Er’s in front of their master were as different as mud and clouds.

Zheng Dafeng also resented the master’s bias, but some things were impossible to accept as fate.

Zheng Dafeng timidly asked, “Master, Qi Jingchun is determined not to follow the rules. What will become of us then?”

The old man remained silent, puffing on his dry tobacco pipe. A black cat, from who-knows-where, arrived and squatted not far from the old man’s feet, shaking its fur and splashing water droplets.

Zheng Dafeng worriedly said, “That fellow from Zhenwu Mountain actually invited a god down to the mortal realm. Won’t that cause trouble? After all, countless eyes are watching us now.”

The old man still didn’t speak.

Accustomed to his master’s taciturn nature, Zheng Dafeng didn’t feel awkward. He rambled on, again thinking of Qi Jingchun and cursing, “Damn it, Qi Jingchun, you’ve been a grandson for fifty-nine years, what difference do a few more days make? You scholars are so inflexible and unreasonable!”

The old man finally spoke, “You’re inflexible even without reading.”

Zheng Dafeng wasn’t ashamed, turning his head to fawn, “Should I give you an old man a shoulder rub and leg massage?”

The old man casually said, “I don’t have any savings for a coffin, so give up on that idea.”

Zheng Dafeng blushed and said, “Master, those words wound my heart! As your disciple, I may not be talented, but my filial piety is abundant. How could I covet such things? I’m not Li Er’s wife.”

The old man grunted and said, “You’re even worse than her.”

Zheng Dafeng’s entire face darkened, his head drooping like a frost-bitten eggplant, devoid of energy.

However, his face suddenly lit up with joy. He realized that his master had said so much today, even if the words were harsh. It was a rare occurrence! When he returned to his room on the east side, he could celebrate with a pot of wine.

Zheng Dafeng’s mood lifted slightly, and he casually asked, “Can Senior Brother stop that guy?”

Before the old man could berate him, Zheng Dafeng slapped himself on the cheek, “It’s only exciting if Senior Brother can’t stop him. If he does, we’ll really be left with nothing but the wind.”

The old man inexplicably asked, “Zheng Dafeng, do you know why you’ll never amount to much?”

Zheng Dafeng was stunned.

He thought that his master’s question held a profound meaning, and he had to respond carefully, after some contemplation.

Unexpectedly, the old man provided the answer himself, “You’re ugly.”

Zheng Dafeng clutched his head, gazing at the splashing rain in the courtyard, a grown man on the verge of tears.

—————

The magistrate’s clerk, without needing to observe much, knew he was no longer welcome, so he found an excuse to leave the room.

Chen Songfeng continued to bury himself in the files. Compared to his earlier trepidation, he had regained some of the carefree air of a scion of a noble family. But the more he did, the more Liu Baqiao felt suffocated. He wanted to vent his frustration, but while his nature was straightforward, he didn’t want to be recklessly outspoken. Liu Baqiao considered going for a walk to clear his head.

Chen Songfeng suddenly looked up and smiled, “Baqiao, finally unable to sit still?”

Liu Baqiao had just lifted his rear from the chair. Hearing this, he plopped back down and said with a forced laugh, “Oh ho, you’re in the mood to tease me? You have a good temperament.”

Chen Songfeng put down an old book and said bitterly, “I made you laugh. I’m not ungrateful for you standing up for me earlier, but…”

Liu Baqiao couldn’t stand sentimentality. He quickly waved his hand and said, “No, no, no. I just can’t stand your distant relative bullying the weak and fearing the strong. I only said a few words because I couldn’t control my tongue. You, Chen Songfeng, don’t need to be grateful.”

Chen Songfeng leaned back in his chair and let out a soft breath.

If this were the Chen clan of Longwei County, just this lazy posture would earn a child a beating, and an adult a scolding from the elders.

Scholars from powerful noble families were often mocked by martial artists as hypocritical and pretentious.

But rules were rules. From the moment they were born, they walked a predetermined path. Every noble child was instilled with them from a young age.

Of course, there was also the Southern Jian Kingdom, known for its pure scholars and eccentric madmen who didn’t adhere to etiquette in their words and deeds.

Liu Baqiao asked, “What’s your relationship with Chen Dui? Are you so afraid of her? If it involves family secrets, just pretend I didn’t ask.”

Chen Songfeng stood up, closed the door, and sat in the clerk’s chair, softly asking, “The buyer of the Liu family boy’s porcelain, after many twists and turns, ended up in the hands of our Chen clan in Longwei County. Aren’t you curious why?”

Liu Baqiao nodded.

Even the Mountain-Moving Ape probably couldn’t have imagined that the competitor who moved because of that sword scripture wasn’t the rival Wind-Thunder Garden, but the Chen clan of Longwei County.

Chen Songfeng looked weary, probably from prolonged anxiety. Those who think too much are bound to tire. Finally, he couldn’t help but confide in someone. He believed in Liu Baqiao’s character, so he slowly said, “Although our Chen clan is closer to your Wind-Thunder Garden, the Chen descendants have always adhered to their ancestors’ teachings and never meddled in the affairs of the mountains. We’ve been steadfast for so many years. Would a sword scripture that’s useless to the Chen clan really make us break our tradition? The Chen clan is a literary family, not a cultivation family. What’s the point of wading into these muddy waters?”

Liu Baqiao followed this line of thought, “It’s Chen Dui’s family who wants to acquire the sword scripture? Could it be that her family is a reclusive sword cultivator clan?”

Chen Songfeng shook his head and said, “Not at all. As Steward Xue mentioned earlier, the Chen clan in the small town is divided into two branches. Chen Dui belongs to the branch that moved away first, very thoroughly. They didn’t even stay in the Dongbao Bottle Continent. They went to another continent. After generations of growth, Chen Dui’s family is now known as the ‘greatest of all world’s workshops.’ Of course, this news has never spread in the Dongbao Bottle Continent. Our Chen clan in Longwei County only knows the inside story because we have a slight connection with them.”

Liu Baqiao sneered, “Is that woman bragging without restraint, or is she taking me, Liu Baqiao, for a fool? Does her family have a Merit Workshop?”

Chen Songfeng held up two fingers.

Liu Baqiao rolled his eyes, “Listen clearly, I’m talking about Merit Workshop, not Merit Name Workshop!”

Chen Songfeng didn’t lower his fingers.

Liu Baqiao felt a little deflated, and continued to ask unconvinced, “Then what about the Academy Workshop? Does her family have that?!”

The Academy Workshop that Liu Baqiao was referring to was naturally the orthodox Confucian Three Academies and Seventy-Two Schools, not just ordinary academies of the secular dynasties.

In the vast Dongbao Bottle Continent, there were only Cliff Academy and Lakeview Academy.

Chen Songfeng slowly put down one finger, leaving one remaining.

Liu Baqiao pretended to stand up, placing his hands on the armrests of the chair, feigning panic, “I need to quickly apologize to that grandmother! Goodness, with such a tyrannical background, it’s no problem for you, Chen Songfeng, to turn pages, even if it’s doing work as a beast of burden!”

Chen Songfeng smiled without saying a word.

This was probably Liu Baqiao’s unique charm, able to make an embarrassing situation not make the involved party angry at all.

Liu Baqiao wiggled his butt, crossed his arms, and leisurely said, “Alright, now I know the terrifying origins of that ancestral grandmother, continue with the main topic.”

Chen Songfeng smiled, “Actually, Steward Xue also said the answer.”

Liu Baqiao had a flash of insight, “The Liu family boy’s ancestor was the guardian of the graves in that town left by Chen Dui’s branch of the Chen clan?”

Chen Songfeng nodded and said, “You’re teachable.”

Liu Baqiao gave a sound of surprise, “That’s not right. The sword scripture passed down in the Liu family didn’t come from the traitor of Zheng Yang Mountain? Of course, he’s also considered one of the founders of our Wind-Thunder Garden, no matter what, the timeline doesn’t match. How could they be the gravekeepers of Chen Dui’s family?”

Chen Songfeng explained, “I can confirm that the Liu family was originally the gravekeepers of Chen Dui’s family. As for why that sword cultivator who hid in your Wind-Thunder Garden later came to the small town, became a Liu family member, and passed down the sword scripture, there are probably some hidden secrets. So, the family heirloom eventually became two things: the sword scripture and the wart armor. As for Chen Dui, her ambition isn’t in the treasures. She’s just here to worship her ancestors. Other than that, if the Liu family still has descendants, no matter their talent, she’ll take them back to the family and nurture them with all her might, as a reward for the grave-keeping merits of the Liu family’s ancestor.”

Liu Baqiao looked bewildered, “Such a big family sent a young girl to worship their ancestors? Then she almost got punched to death by that Dali vassal king? Chen Songfeng, I’ve read a lot of books, although most of them are erotic books about immortals fighting in bed, I have indeed gained a lot of understanding of human relationships, so I think that woman is definitely a fake!”

Chen Songfeng shook his head and smiled bitterly, “Then you haven’t seen how…polite my grandfather was when he saw her.”

To honor his ancestors, Chen Songfeng couldn’t say the truth, so he vaguely described it as “polite.”

The family opened its main gate wide for her, the head of the family bowed deeply to her, and the entire clan revered her as an honored guest, allowing her to sit in the main seat at the reception banquet.

The impact of all this on Chen Songfeng was unimaginable.

Liu Baqiao asked in confusion, “The Liu family boy almost got punched to death by that old ape, didn’t he?”

Chen Songfeng sighed, “You said it yourself, almost.”

Chen Songfeng stood up and walked to the window. The wind and rain were temporarily intermittent, but judging from the sky, it looked like there would be a heavy downpour.

Chen Songfeng softly said, “That Master Ruan seems to be an old acquaintance of one of Chen Dui’s elders. They once traveled the world together and were close friends.”

Liu Baqiao tentatively asked, “Are you saying that Chen Dui’s family used their influence to have Ruan Qiong replace Qi Jingchun and sit in charge here?”

Chen Songfeng said casually, “I didn’t say anything.”

Liu Baqiao clicked his tongue in wonder.

No wonder this woman could be so tough with Song Changjing.

With the power of her family in the far distance and the protection of the sage right in front of her, how could she not be arrogant?

Liu Baqiao suddenly asked, “Tell me about the natal porcelain and the porcelain buyers. I’ve always been interested in that. It’s a pity that our Wind-Thunder Garden doesn’t have that kind of practice. It was only when my master forced me to come here as a laborer that I roughly heard some things. It seems that now in the Dongbao Bottle Continent, there are several famous figures at the peak who first came out of this small town?”

Chen Songfeng hesitated slightly, but still chose to be frank, revealing the secrets of heaven, “It’s similar to gambling on rough stones in the mundane world. Every year, about thirty infants are born in the small town, and thirty dragon kiln furnaces choose a child as their own ‘porcelain’ according to the seat ranking. For example, if thirty-two children are born in the small town this year, then the top two dragon kilns can have two pieces of porcelain. If there are only twenty-nine newborns next year, the lowest-ranked dragon kiln means that there will be no harvest for the whole year.”

“So, the people who grew up in the small town all have their own natal porcelain. Now, Cao Xi and Xie Shi, who are unparalleled on the continent, one with the hope of becoming a celestial ruler of Taoism, and the other a wild sword immortal with infinite killing power, are no exceptions. Although this pond in the small town is extremely easy to produce dragons compared to the outside world, the cost of transforming into a dragon is huge. Once these ‘porcelain’ successfully enter the middle five realms, they are destined to have no afterlife if they don’t reach the five realms during their lifetime. Their souls will be scattered, and everything will be over forever. I’m afraid even the Taoist ancestors and Buddhas can’t help. During this period, the porcelain buyers will seize their fatal weaknesses, controlling their lives and deaths in the hands of others. Even if you are a figure like Cao Xi and Xie Shi, it’s the same.”

“That being said, when they become world-shattering figures like Cao Xi and Xie Shi, the porcelain buyers will only want to worship them as ancestors. They wouldn’t dare to claim to be the owners of the porcelain. After all, it’s a mutually beneficial thing. Any family that can have a combat power like Cao Xi and Xie Shi can sleep soundly, for a simple reason. They may not be able to mobilize their grand presence for ordinary small matters, but when it comes to the survival of the family, they must come to help. If they don’t want to fight for my family, that’s fine, then I’ll shatter your natal porcelain, and everyone will perish together.”

Liu Baqiao was amazed, “No wonder the Dali Dynasty has risen rapidly in just two or three hundred years, and has already formed a grand momentum to annex the northern territory of the continent. Liu Baqiao listened attentively, simply sat cross-legged on the chair, rubbing his chin with his palm, and asked:

“I know that for girls in the small town, six years old and for boys nine years old is a big threshold, the same principle as us practicing cultivation. At that time, we can know the height of future cultivation achievements. If at that time, the porcelain buyers come to the small town to take away the children with great prospects, then what about those mediocre pieces of porcelain? How should the major dragon kilns deal with those worthless natal porcelain of the children who lost the bet?”

Chen Songfeng softly said, “They will be taken out of the dragon kiln, smashed on the spot, and discarded. There is a porcelain mountain outside the small town, which comes from this.”

Liu Baqiao felt vaguely uneasy and asked, “What will be the fate of those children?”

Chen Songfeng shook his head and said, “I haven’t heard of it, but I guess it won’t be good.”

Liu Baqiao sighed and raised his hand to rub his cheeks hard.

This secret matter, which was personally decided by all parties of the sages, was by no means something that his small Wind-Thunder Garden sword cultivator could point fingers at.

But the young man just felt a little uncomfortable.

After a long silence, Liu Baqiao softly said, “In that case, the guys who came out of here, everyone is a pawn crossing the river.”

Chen Songfeng followed up and said, “Who isn’t on the path of cultivation?”

Liu Baqiao felt sympathetic and nodded, “That’s right.”

—————

The door creaked open lightly, and the grass-shoed boy with a pale face tiptoed across the threshold, turned around and gently closed the wooden door.

Also learning from Old Man Yang, he moved a small stool and sat on the steps. The raindrops were as large as soybeans, and the sky was as dark as night. However, for some reason, so much rain hitting the eaves did not result in many raindrops actually getting under them. The old man had been sitting for a long time, but his clothes only had a bit of moisture on them. Chen Pingan intertwined his fingers and quietly looked at the small pond that had formed from the water in the courtyard.

The old man puffed on his dry tobacco pipe, large clouds of smoke filling the surrounding area. However, the smoke under the eaves and the rain curtain outside the eaves did not interfere with each other.

It seemed as if there was an invisible line in the world.

The biggest reason the old man didn’t dislike the boy was that the boy wouldn’t randomly yell, and wouldn’t bother him, no matter what the situation. If he could avoid speaking, he would never open his mouth.

The boy was similar to his disciple Li Er in this regard.

Zheng Dafeng was far from it.

Chen Pingan softly said, “Grandpa Yang, thank you for so many years.”

The old man frowned and said, “Thank me? If I remember correctly, I’ve never helped you for nothing. What reward was ever missing?”

Chen Pingan smiled.

Just like how Old Man Yang had agreed to let Chen Pingan gather herbs on the mountain for the Yang family shop, and then buy them at a low price, while at the same time selling many herbs in the shop to Chen Pingan at a low price. It seemed fair, but Chen Pingan knew that this was truly helping him.

And also, a self-made bamboo tobacco pipe, what was it worth?

But Chen Pingan had been able to persevere for so many years without getting sick or injured to a large extent, all thanks to the breathing methods that Old Man Yang had taught him back then.

The old man raised his head, looked at the sky, and sneered, “When others give a little favor, they can’t wait to treat them as the Bodhisattva who saves them from suffering, especially when the big shots squeeze a little bit of scum from between their teeth, they are particularly grateful, and even they themselves can be moved by their innocent heart, feeling that they are repaying kindness, so they are loyal ministers of Confucianism, or someone’s proud disciple, calling it ‘a scholar dies for one who understands him,’ a bunch of ungrateful bastards, they shouldn’t have crawled out of their mother’s wombs in the first place…”

Chen Pingan scratched his head, feeling a little uneasy, not knowing if Old Man Yang was talking about him.

The old man withdrew his gaze and said indifferently, “Not talking about you.”

Chen Pingan suddenly saw a familiar figure, and was therefore a little dazed.

The main hall’s back door had a cloistered eave. A middle-aged Confucian scholar with temples streaked with white arrived with an umbrella. Holding the umbrella in one hand and a long stool in the other, he passed through the side door, placed the stool in the corridor, leaned the oil-paper umbrella beside the stool, and then patted his knees, sitting upright, and finally smiled at the old man and boy under the eaves of the backyard’s main house, and said in a gentle voice, “Qi Jingchun of Cliff Academy, greets Old Man Yang.”

The Confucian scholar’s boots were soaked in rainwater and stained with silt, and the hem of his robe was also like this.

The old man was relaxed, pointing his tobacco pipe at the saint, “The first day you came, I knew you were a frustrated person, but after so many years together, I haven’t heard a single complaint from you, which is strange. You, Qi Jingchun, don’t seem like someone who would swallow insults, so this time you’ve lost your mind, outsiders may be a little confused, but I’m not surprised at all.”

Qi Jingchun reached out and patted his stomach, smiling, “I have complaints, my stomach is full of them, but I just haven’t spoken them out.”

Old Man Yang thought about it, “I don’t know about your abilities, but just based on the fact that your teacher dares to say those four words, in my eyes, he can be considered this.”

The old man held up his thumb.

Qi Jingchun smiled bitterly, “The teacher is actually even more knowledgeable.”

The old man sneered, “I’m not a scholar, even if your teacher’s knowledge has surpassed the Supreme Sage, I won’t say a single good thing about him.”

Qi Jingchun asked seriously, “Old Man Yang, do you think those four words from our teacher are correct?”

The old man laughed, “I don’t think they’re correct, but before, all the respectable people in the world believed in the previous four words, which annoyed me, so someone came out to sing a different tune, and I felt relieved, that’s all. You scholars are fighting among yourselves, stripping away all pretense and leaving a mess, I’m very happy!”

Qi Jingchun burst out laughing.

Qi Jingchun was about to speak, but the old man, already understanding, waved his hand and said, “Don’t say polite words, I don’t like to hear them, we are not the same kind of people, it has always been like this, don’t break the rules. Besides, you Qi Jingchun are now a rat crossing the street, everyone is shouting to kill you, I dare not associate with you.”

Qi Jingchun nodded, got up and waved to Chen Pingan, “Since I had nothing to do, I used the snake gall stone you sent to carve two more personal seals, one in the official script and one in the small seal script, to give to you.”

Chen Pingan ran across the courtyard like a pond in the rain, stood in front of Qi Jingchun, and took a white cloth bag.

Qi Jingchun smiled and said, “Remember to keep them safe. In the future, when you see paintings and calligraphy that you like, such as some landscape paintings with extraordinary momentum, you can take out the seals and stamp them on it.”

Chen Pingan nodded in a daze and said, “Okay.”

Old Man Yang glanced at the bag in the boy’s hand and asked, “What about the ‘Spring’ character?”

Qi Jingchun smiled, “I carved a seal earlier and gave it to a child from the Zhao family.”

The old man laughed, “Are you, Qi Jingchun, the Sudhana of the Good Wealth?”

Qi Jingchun didn’t mind the old man’s teasing and left after saying goodbye.

Seeing the boy standing there like a piece of wood, Old Man Yang laughed and scolded, “Did you just take something from someone and think about jumping and skipping home to hide in your quilt and secretly be happy? Don’t you know how to send Mr. Qi off?”

The boy quickly ran towards the back door of the main hall, and the old man cursed, “Take an umbrella! With your health now, can you withstand this wind and rain?”

Chen Pingan borrowed an umbrella from the shop assistant, caught up with Mr. Qi, and walked together on the street.

The old man sat under the eaves the whole time, smoking his dry tobacco pipe, smoke swirling around.

Thinking of the two private seals, although they were still in the bag, Old Man Yang was able to sense the clues in them, so he had the question about the “Spring” character.

Between the inches, it was grand indeed.

Before long, the grass-shoed boy returned to the courtyard, and Old Man Yang asked, “What did he say in the end?”

Chen Pingan sighed, sat back on the small stool, “Mr. Qi said a word, saying that a gentleman can be deceived by his righteousness.”

Old Man Yang said sullenly, “Those old guys standing in the Confucius Temple, are their brains broken? It’s obvious that someone is targeting Cliff Academy and Qi Jingchun, and they are still standing by and watching, do they really think they are clay sculptures, dead things?”

Chen Pingan didn’t hear clearly and asked, “Grandpa Yang, what did you say?”

The old man remained silent.

Such a not doing the sage, but doing the gentleman.